Over the last decade, the number of women entrepreneurs has increased substantially. The annual rate of growth in the number of female-owned companies has more than doubled over the last five years.
The Increasing Amount of Women Entrepreneurs
From 2014 to 2021, the number of companies belonging to women grew at an annual rate of 3.9%, with an average annual increase of 1.7% for every company. The annual growth rate has been up for the last year: 5.0% for female companies and 2.3% for all companies. Surprisingly, the net new figures for 2018 and 2021 are driven by the mix of need, flexibility, and prospect-driven entrepreneurship— each of which represents a very different kind of businesswoman.
One of the main reasons for this surge is the availability of small business loans for women. The Office of Women’s Business Ownership, for example, assists women entrepreneurs through SBA district office coordination programs. The services provide business training, guidance, federal contracts, as well as credit and capital access.
Why Franchising Resonates With a Wide Community of Women Entrepreneurs?
According to FranNet, a US-based franchise consultancy, the number of women-owned franchise businesses grew by 83% between 2011 and 2017, while male ownership rose just 13%. So what is in the world of franchising that resonates strongly with a wide community of women entrepreneurs?
1. Successful Track Record
Women entrepreneurs like to see a successful track record before joining a company. They like the fact that franchises have a set of well-established operating procedures, suppliers, HR practices, and other operational details that can be a major problem for new businesses.
2. Flexibility
Many women view franchising as a family-friendly enterprise, in addition to taking their careers into their own hands, which gives them greater flexibility in balancing work and home. Moreover, more and more women are seeking flexible careers outside of the traditional 9-to-5 roles.
3. Increase in Funding Opportunities
Another reason for the rise of women in franchising is that female funding has seen a tremendous increase over the last few years. Earlier, women on average had to face a lot of difficulties securing franchise funding as compared to men. However, newer reports show the average small business loans for women granted by the SBA between 2013 and 2017 increased 22.5% compared to a mere 5.7% increase for male franchisees.
4. Natural Traits/Skills
Women, in general, are good at networking and working collaboratively. These natural traits help them easily understand and adapt to the franchise business.
5. Ease of Setup
Another important factor is the speed at which a new franchise business can be started on a proven business model alongside the support of the franchisor and their team.
Conclusion
More and more franchisors are searching for qualified female franchisees for their systems as women-ownership continues to grow. Ultimately, this could be a potent force for diminishing the gender income gap for the better.
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